Royal Academy launches architecture awards
The Royal Academy of Arts has announced a generous gift from the Dorfman Foundation which will significantly transform the future of architecture at the Royal Academy. As the RA prepares to celebrate its 250th anniversary in 2018, the support from the Dorfman Foundation will enable the RA to launch two new international architecture awards, together with the restoration of the majestic Senate Rooms in Burlington Gardens to house a new architecture space and cafe.
Coupled with the Royal Academy’s new commitment to host a yearly architecture exhibition, the gift will realise the RA’s mission to garner a wider appreciation and understanding of architecture, bringing to the fore its vital relationship to culture and society.
The annual international awards will encompass the Royal Academy Architecture Prize, honouring an inspiring and enduring contribution to the culture of architecture and the Royal Academy Dorfman Award that champions new talent in architecture. The awards will be nominated and awarded by distinguished architects and artists, alongside international curators and critics. The inaugural jury will be chaired by the architect and Royal Academician Louisa Hutton. The Royal Academy Architecture Prize winner and the shortlist for the Royal Academy Dorfman Award will be announced in January 2018. In May 2018 a week-long public celebration will include the announcement of the winner of the Royal Academy Dorfman Award and also include an address by the recipient of the Royal Academy Architecture Prize. Collectively the awards will demonstrate and heighten the RA’s role as a global advocate of architecture.
Alongside the awards, as part of the major redevelopment by internationally-acclaimed architect Sir David Chipperfield RA, a new Architecture Studio will open in 2018. Located in the Dorfman Senate Rooms, the Architecture Studio will provide a permanent home for architectural display and a creative space that invites audience engagement with innovative and critical ideas on architecture and its intersection with the arts.